Riverdale Double Digest
by RAEng
Summary: Welcome to a series of oneshots starring our favourite Riverdale characters. Leave a comment if you have suggestions or requests!


_This is yours, if you want it,_ the senior Serpent had said as he extended a black leather motorcycle jacket to Jughead. He tentatively took it in his hands and studied it, taking in the infamous Southside Serpent insignia on the back. A wicked grin surfaced its way onto his face as he proudly slipped the jacket on. The zippers rattled and the leather creaked as he adjusted the jacket on his lean frame. The thick leather had a heaviness to it but he discovered that liked the newfound weight that rested on his shoulders. It was a symbol of family, of trust, of power, of unconditional loyalty to the Southside Serpents. It was definitely a wardrobe upgrade.

"Jughead." Betty said his name again, only this time she forwent the use of his nickname. It sounded like a warning, or a reprimand to his ears. He turned to face her only to find that her expression didn't match her strong tone. Her blue eyes were rounded ever so slightly and her brows creased upwards for a split second. She was scared but was doing her best to hide it.

Jughead's brows furrowed as he looked down at his leather clad arms. He didn't know what to say to Betty. He wanted to reassure her that she shouldn't be scared but maybe she should be afraid of him. Maybe she should even be disgusted by him. This was him now. This is who he is. This is who he was meant to be.

When she didn't get a response, she began to say "What-" but nothing followed. Betty Cooper, resident journalist and expert reporter, had become speechless as if she had forgotten how to ask the fundamental five w's of journalism. Jughead speculated that she wanted to ask _What is that? What are you doing? What in the hell?_

"What?" he snapped defensively at her, throwing her question back at her.

Betty winced at his harsh tone but she recomposed herself. Abandoning her question, she changed routes and went with a statement. She firmly said, "Juggie, this isn't you."

Jughead shook his head dismissively. "Save it Betty. You don't know who I am." He made a quarter turn clockwise to put some distance between them.

Betty brought herself a step closer to him, although she kept a safe distance away as if she were trying to approach a frightened animal that might bolt at the slightest movement. "I _do_ know who you are. And this isn't you. The Jughead I know has worked so hard to be everything that his father wasn't."

"Yeah? Well maybe I'm tired of trying to be something I'm not. Look around! This is my life! In case you have forgotten, I live on the Southside, I go to Southside High; the universe is trying to tell me that I'm destined to be a Serpent!"

"That's ridiculous, Jughead!" Betty took another step towards her boyfriend and grasped one of his hands between two of her own. She forced his fingers to unclench so she could hold his hand. "This isn't your destiny," she said earnestly. "There's no such thing as destiny."

Jughead retracted his hand from her hold on him. "Whatever. Destiny or no destiny, I belong here. My dad confessed to a murder for _me_."

Betty brought herself closer to him again. She would follow him until he had nowhere left to retreat to. Her head tilted and she pleaded with rounded glossy eyes. "Juggie, you don't owe your dad anything. You don't owe him your life. He wouldn't want you to do this."

"Look," he said sharply. "He may not have been Dad of the Year, but he cares enough to take twenty to life for me. He cares enough to protect the Serpents, and the Serpents care enough for me. This is finally something good."

"But _I_ care for you Jughead!" she said argued. "So does Archie and Veronica and Kevin and Polly and my mom," she listed in a flurry. Betty choked on a ragged breath. "Isn't that enough for you?"

Jughead shook his head repeatedly. "It's not," he said looking anywhere but at Betty. He felt Betty's hand release its grip on his, like she was finally giving up. He turned to face her and found that tears had spilled out of her eyes now. " _I'm_ not enough for _you_ ," he told her. "I'll never be good enough for you." Unknowingly, he had repeated the same painful words Archie had once said to Betty. Jughead watched at her fresh tears followed the path laid down by the first few.

It was as if her tears worked to extinguish the fire fuelling his anger. He instantly regretted making her cry, but he didn't regret his words. He was just being honest. "One day you'll realize that you're better off without me. You're not going to stick around forever, Betty. But the Serpents and my dad are going to be here forever. They're my family."

Betty wiped at her eyes and put on a hardened expression. "People don't leave _you_ Jughead. _You_ alienate yourself from everyone else. _You_ pull away whenever people get too close. Don't you dare blame me for that!"

Jughead signed in exasperation. "I'm not blaming you, Betty! I'm just being realistic. What percentage of high school relationships work out?" he asked rhetorically. "Not a lot. And then factor in how different we are from each other. You're little miss preppy princess. I'm just lowlife Serpent scum. We don't have a shot in hell."

Betty shook her head furiously. "Maybe we don't have a chance," Betty agreed. "Or maybe we do. It doesn't matter because we're friends, Juggie, and we'll always be friends." Betty stepped forward into his personal space. She looked him dead in the eyes. "You are not scum," she told him. "You may be a Serpent, but you're not scum, Jughead Jones. You are one of the most thoughtful and goodhearted people I know. And I am not a princess," she reminded him. He knew she hated it when people compared her to the ideals of perfection.

"Sorry," he muttered, briefly being reminded of his birthday night when they fought. He remembered that he had called her the girl next door and she had expressed how much she hated that.

Betty didn't care for his apology. She continued on with her lecture. "Regardless of where life takes us, I will be there for you, Juggie. You have to give me the chance to show you that I'm not going anywhere! Just let me in. Don't push me away," she pleaded. "I love you, dammit! And I don't think I can stop loving you!" she cried with exasperation."

Jughead searched her pale blue eyes for confirmation of her words. It was one thing to say something, but it was entire different to mean something. Satisfied with what he found, he closed the distance between them and kissed her lips. She responded right away, signalling to him that she was expecting this. One of her hands slid to the nape of his neck to tangle in his hair. His own hands roamed all over from cupping her face, to rubbing her shoulder blades, to gently squeezing her waist.

Jughead pulled away to tell her in a breathy voice, "I don't deserve you."

Betty's eyes were still closed. She shook her head lightly and hushed him. She pulled his face back to hers in a searing kiss. With one hand resting on the small of her back, he walked her backwards towards his room. He broke away one last time to whisper in her ear, "I love you, Betty Cooper." And for the first time in his life, he had taken down all the walls and let Betty Cooper inside.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Leave a review/comment/question/request.


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